


See Them Dancing

by WonderstruckSwan



Category: Class (TV 2016)
Genre: Little Mermiad AU, M/M, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-02
Updated: 2017-01-02
Packaged: 2018-09-14 07:25:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,608
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9168208
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WonderstruckSwan/pseuds/WonderstruckSwan
Summary: Charlie,a young prince from an underwater kingdom, has always had a fascination with humans. When he saves one from a shipwreck, he wistfully longs for a life with him.





	

**Author's Note:**

> I may turn this into a bigger AU

Charlie really was too curious for his own good. There was some old saying Quill muttered about him on occasion-"It was curiosity that killed the cat." Except that, technically, curiosity couldn't kill anything, something else that happened because you were curious would. So he was perfectly safe, technically.  
Still, he knew swimming up to the surface and watching humans from afar wasn't the best or most sane idea-especially not for the prince to be doing. But he couldn't help it; they were funny in their ways. He'd seen them go quickly across the sand while throwing something between them. He'd seen them move their legs in strange but wonderful fashions while the most beautiful music played, lighter melodies than his people played, making him feel like he was flying. He loved hearing all their little expressions-things like "Pass it over here!" and "You make my head explode."  
Tonight though, the beach was quiet. That wasn't where he was headed. He had left his castle while it was still quite light out, telling everyone he needed to clear his head. Then he set off, remembering details from conversations he had over heard from his hiding place about a party that was being held on a boat being launched from a place not far from the beach. He popped his head up a few times to make sure he hadn't missed it and saw the ship getting bigger and bigger each time until he was close enough. It looked about the size of his castle and humans were swarming over it. Loud music, different music, with instruments he hadn;t heard before, was playing, accompanied by the hum of chatter and occasional yelps from others.  
As the ship set sail he swan a few feet from it, fascinated by the movement and machienery but not stupid enough to try to get a look as it moved. He'd heard those stories and didn't fancy it being him that was cut to pieces.  
The ship slowed gradually until it halted in a still familiar part of the ocean (ironically it was not too far from Charlie's kingdom). He debated as to whether or not he should before deciding yes he should and popped his head above the water's surface.  
The party was in full swing, including rainbow coloured lights that flashed from inside the ship, which had him mesmerised. However he was soon drawn away from them by a faint argument as two people came out onto the ship's balcony. He moved to get a better view and strained to see. One was a boy of his age and the other was a woman. The woman shoved him so hard he fell down and stormed back inside.  
The boy leaned on the railing, staring out to the horizon. Charlie ducked behind the boat, safely out of sight, but felt overcome with the want to see him better. There were metal sticks attached to the side of the ship just a few feet from the boy. It was utter madness and probably the thing that would get him killed. But then again, if going up to the surface hadn't got him killed or spotted, how hard could this be?  
He grasped his wet hand around the stick, gasping at the unfamiliar feeling. Once he got used to it, he grasped the other and began to pull himself up. He was panting by the time he reached the top, his arms tingling after the effort but he still propped himself up on the deck, another unfamiliar sensation under his arms and watched the human.  
He first noticed how handsome he was. He looked strong, his muscles strained against his white shirt. He stood side on, allowing Charlie to see his chiseled jawline and pink lips. His eyes were blue green like the sea and full of sadness too. Charlie felt a surge of pity for him. Maybe he was upset because of the fight he had seen.  
The boy turned around, leaning against the railing and staring at the sky before his eyes drifted back down and landed on.....  
Crap, Charlie thought. He definitely saw him. The boy blinked a few times as if to make sure he hadn't made it up before beginning to run towards him. He only just made to the railing before Charlie was back in the water.  
Really that close call should have been Charlie's hint to go home and forget about it all. And yet here he was, a good distance from the ship but still watching it.  
It wasn't his fault that humans fascinated him. He had been collecting lost things since he was a child, little trinkets he didn't know what to do with but stashed them in a hidden hole in his bedroom nevertheless. He wanted to know more, to ask them about which thing did what and why they had so many, to learn their dances and customs. He flicked his tail sadly, reminding himself his dream was futile.  
The night went on without any drama. That was until he noticed something strange with the ship; it was tilted at an angle. He spend forward to see that it was creeping below the water, slowly but surely.  
"Oh gods," he muttered. For one fleeting moment he considered fleeing and leaving them, it was none of his business after all. But he shook that away and went closer. The humans were packing themselves into smaller boats that descended into the water. They were remarkably calm. And at least the small boats were full, he remembered an old story about the smaller boats being packed at half capacity, leaving countless to die. That had given him nightmares for weeks.  
As more and more descended, he began to calm. They seemed to be all right, though very shaken (which is why he didn't want to go to them. They were shocked enough, he didn't want to add what they believed to be a myth to the mix). He saw the last remaining boat get loaded and let his shoulders drop. As the small boats began sailing away he wanted to be completely relaxed but crept to the half sunken ship just to be sure.  
He circled the ship once, passing the crack in the bottom which must have caused the sinking (there must have been some unexpected rocks that damaged it). He winced at it, hoping there was nothing of value left behind. He had almost decided to leave when he saw something that didn't belong. It was a human-the same one he'd seen earlier, the one who had almost seen him- unconscious and slowly sinking.  
Charlie sped forward and grabbed him around the waist. The sudden extra weight pulled him down but he pushed forward, breaking the surface of the water. Charlie deduced that he must have been knocked out since there was blood on his head.  
"Wake up," he whispered. "Please." No response. Charlie turned in the direction of the beach and swan forward, keeping the human's head above water.  
When he reached the beach it was still empty. A mermaid's tail was more powerful than humans in boats after all. He laid him out on the sand, searching frantically for signs of life.  
"Please don't be dead," he begged. His hands roamed over his body, looking for a heartbeat, anything. He stopped his hand when he felt something move under his touch. It was a heartbeat, faint but gaining strength by the minute. He was breathing too. "Thank you," he whispered to the gods.  
The man was handsome, even more so up close. He wondered why he had been upset, what the fight was about. He studied his face, trying to match it to one he'd seen before, but he had never actually seen a human's face so if he had been one of the guests at the parties on the beach, he wouldn't know.  
"What if I lived up here?" he asked, his voice just loud enough for him to hear. "Would you talk to me? Would we be friends?" He remembered humans twirling their partners around as the music played. "Would you dance with me?" It was silly to even think about those things, he knew that. He would never get to dance like they did, certainly not with this boy he had just met. "I'm glad you're alive. Really glad." He ghosted his fingers across his face, brushing away the sand and grit. "Hopefully someone can help with that...." He gestured to the wound on the side of his head.  
The boy shifted, making Charlie freeze in shock. He groaned and opened his eyes slowly.  
"It's okay," Charlie whispered. "You'll be okay." He glanced over his shoulder and saw some boats coming to the shore. "See? They're here."  
Seeing the humans begin to come to the beach and realising that the boy was almost awake, Charlie made his way to the water and slipped back in. For the second time that night, he went against his better judgement and settled himself on a rock, just as the sun was coming through the clouds. He heard a young man call out "Matteusz!" before running towards him. Others followed and crowded around him, helping him to sit, wrapping something around him.  
Maybe one day he'd see Matteusz again. He liked the name. It was different to any name he had come across before. Maybe one day Matteusz would tell him all about humans and how they lived. Maybe he'd show him how to dance. Maybe.  
Maybe seahorses will fly he thought sadly as he jumped back into the water and headed home.


End file.
